


The Flame Pirate

by SmileyTrashBag1



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types
Genre: Kidnapping, M/M, Mermen, Pirates, polarspazAU!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-31
Updated: 2018-07-14
Packaged: 2018-09-21 02:27:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9527735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmileyTrashBag1/pseuds/SmileyTrashBag1
Summary: Roy is an ex-Navy officer.  He was exiled to an isolated island after disobeying orders and attacking his commander.  Roy believed that the island had no inhabitants, but when he saves a merman off the shore one day, he realizes he isn't so alone.Inspired by Polarspaz's Pirate!Au





	1. Chapter 1

   Out on the Amestris seas was a small island.  On this island there were big, tall trees, that offered suitable shade, which were surrounded by a ring of golden sand.  There was a small peninsula that rose from the ground the further it got from the center of the island.  The isle was just large enough to sustain a group of fifteen to twenty people, but only one person lived on the island.

   Roy sat on the beach of his new island home contemplating everything that had led him to this point.  He used to be a captain for the Marine Government, following orders and executing those he was told to.  That all changed when he refused an order and attacked his commander.

   Commander Bradley, or King Bradley as he liked to be called, had ordered Roy and his crew to attack an innocent village because they were protesting the rise in taxes.  King Bradley had been a tyrant in his patrol of the sea (Each commander was given a portion of the sea to patrol, and were free to levy any additional taxes that they wanted).  King Bradley was the commander of the sector named Central.  

   King Hoenheim, or Father as his commanders called him, ruled over all the sectors.  Father was a corrupt king who placed his children in the places of commander and made it impossible for anyone else to gain the position.

   The fight with King Bradley had been long and hard, but Roy emerged victorious only losing an eye in the end.  Though the act of killing a commander was crime punishable by death, but due to his previous contributions to the Ishval Uprising they instead stripped him of all his titles and exiled him to this lonely island. Father had then appointed a new commander, an old family friend of his by the name of Zolf J. Kimblee.  If anything Kimblee was even more of a tyrant than King Bradley had ever been.

   Roy doesn’t regret what he did though he did wish for the commander position.   _They could at least send some company_ Roy thought tiredly.  The ex-soldier was considering exploring the island some more, when he heard the sound of splashing further down the beach.  Turning toward the sound, he wondered what could make such a sound.  It sounded as if a fish had jumped out of the water, or got washed up with tide.  Roy stood up from where he had been watching the sun rise, raising his arms above his head to stretch out all the aches of sitting there for hours.  After stretching, he stooped down and picked up the hand-made spear by his bed roll, and moved in the direction of the sound.  When he topped the crest of the sand dune he was shocked by what he saw.  

   There struggling in an abandoned fishers net was a blonde (extremely good-looking) merman caught in a net.  The merman was trying his best to get his admittedly short tail free from the net, cursing the whole time.  Roy could have helped him, but he found it more enjoyable to watch him struggle instead.  Eventually, after much struggling the merman took notice of him, he froze in fear for a minute before getting angry, “Either help a guy out, or kill him, DON’T JUST WATCH HIM STRUGGLE FOR HIS LIFE BASTARD!”

   “It’s not everyday that someone sees a merman, especially one with such a short tail.”

   “WHOSE TAIL ARE YOU CALLING SHORT!”  Roy stepped back in shock before smirking evilly, _this is going to be fun._

   “Well, seeing as how you are the only other person I could be talking to, common sense would denote that it is _you_ that I’m referring to.”  Roy watched in amusement as the merman’s face grew an angry red, as a dangerous scowl made it’s way upon his face.

   “You know what? I don’t _need_ or _want_ your help.  Go off and do whatever it is that annoying bastards do, and leave me _alone_.”  The merman then started struggling with net wrapped around his tail, disregarding Roy.

   “Oh no, please allow me to help.”  Roy moved forward as if to help, but the second the words had left his mouth the merman had turned to him, hissing.

   “Don’t come anywhere near me with that.”  He was pointing to the spear that was held loosely in Roy’s right hand.  Roy dropped the spear, and approached the reluctant merman.  He helped him free of the net, and watched as he slipped back into the water.

 

 

 

   Roy was thoroughly surprised when he found the merman with the net again, except this time he wasn’t tangled in it.  Instead a great pile of fish was trapped within.  Roy gazed at the fish in confusion and turned his questioning eye to the merman.  The merman seemed a slight bit impatient, and gestured towards the fish.

   “Mermen never leave their debts unpaid, so take the dumb fish already.”  Roy did so reluctantly.  The second that Roy had grabbed the net the merman turned to leave, but stopped when Roy quietly questioned “What's your name?”

   The merman seemed to think it over slightly before quietly responding, “Edward,” and swimming away.

 

 

 

   Roy had thought, and deep down hoped, that his encounters with the merman would be his last.  Alas, that was not to be as Edward returned just two short weeks later, and he seemed to have no other reason for coming other than to annoy the hell out of Roy.  Unlike before, when he had brought fish, he now brought questions. Very annoying, impossible to answer questions.  Samples of the questions he asked were ‘What’s the universe made of?,’(“How would I know.”) ‘What makes you human and me a merman?,’(“You have a fish tail, I do not.”) and ‘Wanna know what lives at the bottom of the ocean?’(Not particularly.).

   If Roy had known how annoying this pest was going to be he might have just left him to dry up on the beach - he’d always wanted to try fish soup (though he wasn’t a cannibal).  Edward kept asking these questions - that Roy was almost ninety-nine percent sure no one had the answer to - until the sun started to set.  Then he slipped back into the ocean finally giving Roy his peace back.

 

 

 

   Roy was once again sitting on his beach, staring out towards the sun.  Ed had been visiting for about two months now, and continued to be an annoying pest.  His visits were at random, giving Roy no time to prepare for the oncoming headache Edward  Elric was bound to invoke.  Despite Ed’s annoying traits (and Roy’s witty remarks) the two had struck up a strange sort of friendship.  Ed would show up at least one day each week.  Sometimes he showed up more, but really it all depended on everything that was happening below the waves (sometimes Roy regretted denying Ed’s offer to teach him about the sea’s depths).  Roy found himself thinking over the past two months, or more specifically, Edward.

   The merman had absolutely no reason to keep coming back to Roy’s little island, and made Roy wonder why Ed even bothered.  His first thoughts were that the merman was lonely, but with how much he talked about his brother and childhood friend he doubted it.  He then thought that maybe the merman was taking pity on him.  That thought stung a bit.  Roy was a very prideful man, and the thought of anyone taking a pity on _him_ was a major blow to his pride.  Roy refused to believe that Ed was taking pity on him.  Roy was determined to figure out why, through any means necessary.


	2. Chapter 2

   Ed showed up three days later.  Whenever he came he always made a large splash, as if to tell Roy he was there.  Roy made his way over to the merman, and sat on shoreline as Ed pulled himself onto the sand beside Roy.  The first time he did this, Roy had questioned how he could be out of water.  Ed had told him that merman (and mermaids) were still half human, and could survive on land, but being they couldn’t walk they didn’t come ashore often.

   They talked as usual, and Roy was trying to find an opening in which to ask his question without seeming desperate for an answer.  Ed unknowingly gave him that opening when he started complaining about his family nagging him.

   “Al keeps asking me why I always come up here, it’s starting to get annoying.”  Ed was laying on his stomach watching as the sun made its slow trek across the sky.

   “Well then why not just tell him?”  Now Roy was really curious, because from what he could gather the brothers usually shared everything with each other, so if Ed wasn’t sharing with his brother it was something big.

   “Because it’s none of his business, and it’s not yours either!”  Ed exclaimed glaring at Roy, but Roy noticed a slight blush spreading across Ed’s cheeks.  It couldn’t be could it?  Did Ed have… a crush… on Roy?!  Roy wasn’t certain how he should feel about that.  Sure, he had been a bit of a player when he was younger, but he stuck with partners of the female gender.

   Before Roy could even try and unravel his feelings for the merman by his side, Ed slid down the beach and slipped down into the sea.  Roy had reached out his hand as if he was going to stop the merman, but dropped it once he realized that Ed had already left.  He hoped Ed came back.

 

 

 

   It had been three weeks since Ed had left, and Roy had had enough time to sort out his thoughts.  He had realized that he had been suppressing anything he felt for Edward in favour of keeping him as a friend.  He wouldn’t lie to himself and say he didn’t have an attraction to the merman, but he wouldn’t go as far as to say it was love.  However, Roy felt that deep down it could grow into that… if Ed would just come back.  Roy spent those three weeks without Edward working on a pet project of his.  He had started it when he was first left on this island, and he was nearly finished with it.  He was bending and fitting more wood into place, when he heard a splash come from the shore.

   Roy ran to see if Ed had come back, and nearly sighed in relief when he saw him sitting there.  He walked over and sat near the merman, glad to have him back.

   They sat in silence for a moment, before Roy asked, “Something hold you up?”

   “Not really, just making something.”  Roy looked over at Ed curious, wondering what project could keep him busy for so long.  Roy watched as Ed slipped what appeared to be a seashell bracelet off his wrist.  He then took it and offered it to Roy.  Ed face was as redder than the sunset, so Roy guessed that this was a big thing.

   Roy took the bracelet and slipped it onto his own wrist.  Ed let out a relieved sigh, and seemed to calm down when Roy accepted the gift, so Roy figured he did good.  Ed had been about to slip back into the ocean, when Roy put a hand on his shoulder.  Ed turned to him questioning, until he felt Roy’s lips on his.

 

 

 

   Their relationship started off awkward at first, but they soon found themselves settling into a pattern.  Ed started showing up almost daily now, Roy would flirt with him, Ed would get flustered and threaten to harm Roy in some way or another.  They would always end their days by watching the sunset, holding hands and sharing kisses.  Roy found himself missing Ed whenever he left even if he knew he would be back tomorrow.  It had been about two months since him and Ed had started dating, and while they had their ups and downs, Roy wouldn’t ask for anyone else.

   Roy sighed happily, knowing that Ed would be joining him soon.  As he waited, He had started putting the finishing touches on his pet project. Roy leaned back on his hands and inspected the boat he had been crafting.  He figured he could use this to sneak back onto shore, or fish farther away from his island.  He started moving it to the shore ready to test it and see if it could handle the sea.  Just as he was about to take off, Ed showed up.  

   “What’s that?”  Ed was looking curiously at the boat, as if this was the first time seeing one.  He was leaning forward trying to see every angle of the little ship.

   “It’s a boat.”

   “Aren’t they usually bigger than this.”

   “That’s rich, coming from the merman with a small tail.”

   “WHO’RE YOU CALLING A TINY MINNOW!”  Ed then attempted to lunge at him, but was impeded by his tail.  He fell just a couple inches shy of Roy’s ankles, however while the pirate laughed Ed swiped his feet out from under him, making him fall on his ass.  Roy then growled and lugned at the merman, getting him into a headlock.  The two play struggled for a bit until Roy noticed that the sun would be setting soon.  He walked over to stern of the boat and started to push it into the sea.  Ed watched him, and eventually understood that he was trying to get it into the ocean, so he started tugging on the bow, pulling it towards him as he swam backwards.  It took a little bit of effort, but they finally got it into the ocean.  Roy hopped in, and checked that everything was in place, before unfurling his makeshift sail.

   It took off slowly, but soon caught a good breeze in her sail, propelling her away from the island.  Roy looked back thinking that Ed got left behind when he noticed a dark shadow keeping pace with the small boat.  Roy laughed with giddiness, and angled the boat towards the sinking horizon.  He continued on this path making small adjustments here and there, until he deemed he had performed amble testing.  He turned the boat back towards his island, and was surprised to see that he had sailed so far away that the island was almost indistinguishable from the night sky.  The boat was moving slower now, seeing as the wind wasn’t filling her sails anymore.

   Ed leaned over the side, and began talking to Roy about all the places they could go now that Roy could traverse the sea.  Overall a great night with his boyfriend.

 

 

 

   Roy continued to test and improve his boat, Ed tagging along whenever he could.  Whenever Ed did tag along, he would show Roy coral reefs, or sparkling shores.  However, when Roy was sailing on his own, he would head to nearby ports and coastal cities to stock up on food, or supplies to fix small things on his island.  He had considered contacting his old crew, so as to gain a companion that wasn’t restricted to water, but he wasn’t sure of how they would react to seeing him again.  The last time he had saw them was when Father had stripped him of his title and position, and sentenced him to eternity on his isolated island.  He had only caught brief glimpses of them, so he hadn’t been able to see their reactions to his isolation.  In the end he had decided not to contact them unless he absolutely had to.

   Roy was checking over his boat to see if anything needed to be fixed before he went sailing, when he heard splashing coming from the shore.  Roy stood up and stretched his back, a small smile forming.  He walked to his and Ed’s meeting spot, ready to greet his boyfriend, when he noticed that although they looked extremely similar, this was not Ed.  If Roy were to hazard a guess he would say this is Ed’s younger brother Alphonse.  So far, the only merman to venture near his island was Edward, so to see his younger brother here was unsettling.

   Roy quickened his pace, noticing that Alphonse was looking around frantically.  Just as he was drawing near, Alphonse noticed him, “Are you Roy Mustang?”

   “Yes, and I believe you may be Alphonse.”

   “Please, just Al, sir, but no time for that!  Edward’s been kidnapped!”  
   “What?!”  Roy felt his world shift.  Edward was in danger.  “Who took him?”

   “A gang of pirates, led by a man that called himself Greed.”  Roy grimaced.  Greed took anything that he thought was valuable, no matter the harm to others.  Unlike Father’s other children, Greed took over the sector Father gave to him and made it a hotbed for miscreants and criminals of all varieties.  Greed captured a great lot of creatures, but none of them survived for long under his care.  Roy knew that Ed would have to be saved from Greed, but he couldn’t do it alone.  He was going to have to call on his old crew.

>  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll try my best to never abandon this fic, but there will possibly be times in which I'll put it on Haitus.
> 
> Go check Polarspaz out on tumblr  
> http://polarspaz.tumblr.com/
> 
> Also please check out my tumblr by the same username.  
> http://smileytrashbag1.tumblr.com/
> 
> There was also a picture i drew but I can't get it to work right so here's a link to it instead http://pokesquirrel88.deviantart.com/art/The-Flame-Pirate-Boat-661019962?ga_submit_new=10%3A1486091159&ga_type=edit&ga_changes=1&ga_recent=1


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roy realizes the depth of the hierarchy's corruption.

 

    Roy stepped off his boat, onto the docks of East City.  It felt like forever since he had last set foot on it’s slimy piers.  He had tried avoiding the place, as it was his and his crews preferred rest stop before his isolation.  He wasn't sure if they’d be there or not, but it was good a place to start as any.  Roy did a quick scan of the docks before heading to the seaside pub.

    As he entered the small, squat building he let out a relieved sigh to see that almost nothing had changed, but then felt a small pang of hurt - it was almost as if they forgot about him.  Roy stood in the doorway just a moment more before taking a seat at an empty table in the back corner, looking lost.  He was unsure of what to do now that he was here.  He had rushed off after quickly assuring Al that he would get his brother back in one piece.  Now sitting here in this dirty old pub, did Roy realize that this task would be much harder than he originally thought.

    So far, his only course of action has been to find his old crew and go from there.  He wasn't even sure they would join him on this journey to save his boyfriend of whom to most sailors was a myth.  He scanned the crowds, breathing out a sigh of relief when he noticed that they weren’t there yet. _If_ _they’re coming at all_ he thought sorely.  He shook his head, their absence allowed him time to think of the best way to explain the situation.  He had yet to be approached by any servers, though that was probably because he chose a seat at the back of the pub.  But at that moment, a server girl noticed him and started to get closer.  She had blonde salt and pepper hair and short stature.  Roy recognized her, but for the life of him he couldn’t remember her name.  As she got closer she recognized him and smiled.  He smiled back, still trying to figure out her name.  She stopped at his table and sat down, still smiling.  

    “Why, is that you Roy?  Gosh, it’s been so long I almost didn’t recognize ya’.  Your crew’s been pretty tight-lipped as to where you are.  Speaking of your crew, where are they?”

    “Oh, y-you know out and about running errands, exploring town, I’m certain they'll be in later.”  Roy felt some of his old charisma and charm come back.  His isolation on in the island stripped him of most of it.

    “Was that a stutter I heard!  My, whatever happened these last couple o’ years must have done  _ some _ damage.  Roy Mustang never stutters.”

    It was at that moment that Roy finally got a break, and remembered her name.  “Last I remember Hen, you don’t work.”  Roy raised an eyebrow at her and reclined back with a smirk. 

    “There he is!  The Roy we all know and love.  But about the working thing, I’m afraid taxes have gone up, and the only hope in paying them came with getting a job.  Don’t know where you’ve been Roy, bit them higher up in the chain started abusing their power to the fullest.  People are going missing and dying mysteriously.  If someone tried to look into it they disappear too.  It’s not safe for people anywhere.”

    “Why don’t the people protest,” Roy asked leaning forward and resting his head on his hands.

    “They’re afraid to,” Hena said, “did you not hear of the last person who rebelled against them higher ups.”

    “It’s a bit foggy.”  Roy wasn’t sure who they was talking about as far as he knew, he was the first to truly rebel.

    “Well, it happened to your old Naval commander, Bradley, remember him?”  Roy felt something cold slipping down his spine.  “Well, some soldier attacked him and won the fight.  When the King found out he had the soldier publicly executed.  He then declared that the same treatment would be given to anyone who even so much as whispered treasonous words against the crown.”

    Roy felt sick.  They had murdered another soldier, who had most likely been innocent, in order to cover his blunder.  They used this soldier’s death to oppress the people, and scare them into submission.  Roy felt the rage that he had long ignored start rising to the surface.  He had recognized the corruption that ran in the ruling of the country during his Naval training, possibly even earlier.  But now, now it had reached the pinnacle of indecency.  He vowed, then and there, to topple the crown or die trying.

    Roy was aware that Hena was watching him worriedly, for he hadn’t responded after her explanation and it had been a long awkward silence since she had finished talking.

    “Roy?  Ya’ alright?  You seem to be taking this pretty hard.”

    “Yes, I’m fine.  Thank you for your concern Hen.  I was just sending up a prayer for the brave souls who lost their lives to the crown, and any others that are still missing.  Would you mind getting me my usual.”

    “Amen to that, and you know it would be no trouble.  When the crew comes in I’ll send them back to you ‘kay hun.”

    “Thanks Hen, that would be appreciated.”  And as she walked away he whispered under his breath, “Plans to make, boyfriends to save, and governments to topple, oh what fun!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm putting this story on a Hiatus for a while. I joined a big bang in the Harry Potter community, and I want to focus my attention on that, but next chapter will definitely be Roy's crew.
> 
> P.s sorry for the short chapter


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A glimpse into the happenings of Edward on Greed's ship.

Edward groaned as he opened his eyes.  Looking around, Ed could tell he was below decks in someone’s ship.  He wasn’t aware of how long he’d been here, but if the dryness of his gills and scales was the any indication he’d been here long enough.

Sitting up Ed looked at the area he was enclosed in closely, hoping to find an exit or point of weakness that he could exploit.  Through further observation he was able to realize that he was in a cell, the only exit being the locked door to his right.

If he’d been born a siren then he could have lured one of the sailors of this boat to let him out, and put him back in the water, or better yet never get into this situation in the first place.  But he’d been born a merman with one of the worst voices in the world.  Ed didn’t know what to do now that he was here, he’d never been caught before, there’d been several close calls, but he’d always made it out in the end.  The only thing Ed could think of that made this time different was his continued interactions with that human, his … boyfriend?

He’d been on his way to visit Roy with his brother Alphonse tagging along out of curiosity.  Ed had drifted to the surface of the water to see how far out they were when he’d heard the sound of a bullhorn.  In a panic, he’d swam back down and told Al to hide while he darted off to do the same.  Ed had waited until he heard the ship pass, before coming out of his hiding place.  What he hadn’t accounted for was the trailing net that caught his tail.  Ed had jerked in surprise when he’d felt his tail get snagged and quickly turned around in hopes of getting himself free of the net only to notice a shadowy figure approaching him.  He could tell at first glance that this creature wasn’t a mer or a siren, but it’s humanoid figure had him confused until he realized that it must of been one of the humans that roamed the surface. 

Ed had been ready for a confrontation -even if his tail was bound- when something hit him from behind.  Ed only had enough time to realize that he should have kept an eye on his surrounding before he blacked out only to wake again in this dirty prison cell.

Thinking over it now Ed felt like an idiot.  He should’ve known that it wasn’t safe to come out yet, ships always had a trailing net!  All he could hope for Alphonse to have made some kind of escape to safety.  Ed would never be able to forgive himself if his brother had gotten hurt on his watch.  Being there was nothing else to do, and it seemed as if he wouldn’t be visited for a long while, Ed decided to turn in for the night, hoping things would turn out better when he next awoke.

##  ~~~~~<O>~~~~~

Things had not gotten better.  They’d gotten worse, so so much worse.  When Ed had next awoken it’d been to the sound of footsteps on the boards above his cell.  He’d tried going back to sleep when bright light pierced past his eyelids and directly into his eyes.  Ed had woken up to see a man that definitely wasn’t Roy staring back at him.

“Well, well, well.  Looks like the pretty fishy finally decided to wake up!”  The man sat on one the boxes near the cell aiming an edgar expression his way, “So what all can you do, Siren?”

Ed grimaced and growled at the man, “I ain’t no damn siren, your crew already be in the water dead if I were.  And who the hell do you think you are anyways? Taking me from my reef for what?  Money?  Fame?  Well you’re not getting anything from me!”

“I apologize!  How rude to have not introduced myself,” he said aiming a sneer in Ed’s direction, “I’m Greed, or as I’m known in these parts, Greed the Avaricious.  To answer your question, I wish to add you to my collection, but I’m thinking that a plain old merman just won’t do.”

“So?  Toss me out then, throw me back to the water, and let me go home.”

“Oh, but I can’t you see.  If I let just one creature I didn’t want go then all the unwanted creatures would want to go home, and that’d just leave a stain on my reputation.  No, I do believe I might have to kill you.”

“WHAT?!”

“Hm, yes it’s the only logical course...unless you can prove that you have any worth.”

“So, let me get this straight, “ Ed started, gritting his teeth as he glared at Greed, “either I lick your boots and play nice, or I go to the slaughter house.  Have I got that right, Greedy.”

“Absolutely.  So what’ll it be fish?  Are you gonna find a way to impress me, or is this going to lights out for you?  I’ll give you till the morrow to decide.  Have a nice night!”  He said it with such a sickly sweet smile it made Ed gag.

Greed left, closing the hatch as he went once more subjecting Edward to his cold, quiet cage.  It took moments for the task that lay ahead of Edward to sink in, only increasing his dread further.  _  Roy, you better hope you’re on your way, so help me. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for updating this so late, but I've hit a bit of a writers block with my stories. Sadly this means another short chapter, but I'm going to try and make the next one longer. Hopefully there won't be too much of a gap in between now and the next update, but I can't make any promises.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roy talks to the crew!

           They came in just as the sun was setting.  Many of the other patrons and customers had already left, retiring home to their families and beds.  The waiters were cleaning the tables and washing the dishes when they walked in. The group look ragged, and none of the workers said a thing, they just went in the back and brought out several mugs.  Roy wondered where Hena was, when he spotted her coming out of the kitchens. She noticed the crew’s state and walked to where Roy was sitting.

           “It’s seems that y'all’ had a rough voyage this time around.”

           “Yeah that’s probably what held them up for so long.”

           “But what held You?  You've been avoiding the question Roy.  You and the crew… you'd never let them go on without you.  You put off work at times just to accompany them what changed?”

           Roy sighed, “You want the truth Hen?”

           “Wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t.”

           “That soldier they executed.  He was innocent … well probably, but he wasn’t guilty of the crime they commited him for.  Wanna know how I know this?”

           Hena looked worried and a bit scared, but after a quick look around to see if anyone was listening she leaned in closer and whispered “Tell me.”

           “ _ I  _ killed Bradley,  _ I _ ended his life and was put on trial.  I was sentenced to solitary confinement on an island in the middle of nowhere, and left to my own devices for years.  They made that soldier a scapegoat, so they could keep the people under an iron fist. The reason I haven’t been in with the crew lately is because of the exile and quite honestly this will be the first time in years that I speak to any of them.  Things have happened and I need help, but had I known how bad things were back home I probably would’ve tried harder to get back and help. I could’ve done something to stop... “

           “Roy stop,” Hena said, placing a calming hand on Roy’s, “From the sounds of it, you’ve had a rough time, and nobodies blamin’ ya’ for not acting.  Well they are, but no one knew you weren’t with the crew. The crews gonna welcome you back and then the lot of ya’ can work together to put an end to this tyranny.  But nothing’s gonna happen if you sit back here with your tail between your legs like a scared puppy.”

           “You’re right,” Roy sighed, “Thanks Hen.”

           “No issue Roy, now go get ‘em.”

           He spared one last glance at his drink, of which he’d been taking small sips of ever since he’d gotten it.  Quickly drinking the rest Roy stood and made his way towards his old crew. Roy had hoped that the alcohol would help in approaching them, maybe make him intoxicated, but sadly one glass was not enough, only leaving a slight buzz behind.

           It was Hawkeye, the ever observant one, that took notice of him first.  At first she simply stared before jumping out of her seat and rushing towards him.  Roy had no idea what to expect once she reached him, and he was glad she settled on a sharp slap to the face.  She could’ve done worse. Everyone was shocked into silence for a variety of reasons, the crew for seeing Roy in the first time in years, the servers for Hawkeyes reaction, Roy was silent more out of fear of upsetting the woman before him more than she already was.

           “You dissappear for seven years, and just show up here like nothing has changed?!  Do you know how bad things have gotten Roy? What about ‘To protect the common people’ and ‘fixing the system?’,” Hawkeye, no Riza, seemed on the verge of tears, her stance tight and poised ready to strike, “Did that mean nothing to you Roy?  Do you enjoy seeing people suffer?!”

           “Hawkeye, you don’t understand…”

           “THEN HELP ME TO UNDERSTAND MUSTANG, BECAUSE FROM MY POINT OF VIEW YOU ABANDONED EVERYONE WHEN THEY NEEDED YOU MOST!”

           “I didn’t abandon them, had I known what was going on I’d have been here sooner, but I was left out of the loop, you gotta believe me Riza.”

           Before Hawkeye could say another word Breada stood up and held her back, “We might  as well give him the chance to explain. You can scream at him more after that.”

           Not breaking eye contact, Hawkeye said, “This better be one damn good explantation.”

 

~~~~~~<0>~~~~~~~

           “So you were exiled?  We were never actually told what happened to you, we only saw you that last time before you were sentenced.”  Furey had been a mediator for most of the conversation as most of the others had found it hard to keep calm in light of all the capitals injustices.  Now that he actually had the opportunity Roy could more closely examine the changes that his crew had underwent.

           They looked so different, bit so much like the crew he'd left behind.  He could tell from their eyes that time hadn't been easy on them. They seemed more battle worn, more tired, more like the world would never alright again.  It took that realization for Roy to realize that change wasn't just something he wanted, but was something that was needed. 

           “But, why'd you come back?  Not that I'm not glad you're back!  It's just strange that now of all times you came back!”  

           Roy sighed, it was now or never, “Well not only did I finish my boat just recently, but … Ilostmyboyfriendtopirates.”  He said it in a rush hoping that they both did and didn't hear what he said, but after years of knowing him Riza was immediately able to pick out what he said.

           “How’d you get a boyfriend in exile?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there to anyone reading. I know I said at the end of the last chapter that I'd try to be quick about posting, but here we are months later with a very short chapter. I'm not abandoning this fic trust me, I won't! But updates may be slow coming. Like reallllllllllly slow coming. 
> 
> In other news I'm about to start posting something I've been passionate for years now, and have been working on constantly, ReincarnationTale! I won't stop working on this fic, but it'll be a sort of side project as alongside the comic (because that's what RT is) I'll be starting my Freshman year of college soon.

**Author's Note:**

> I'll try my best to never abandon this fic, but there will possibly be times in which I'll put it on Haitus. I am currently working on - and almost finished with- chapter 2. 
> 
> Go check Polarspaz out on tumblr  
> http://polarspaz.tumblr.com/
> 
> Also please check out my tumblr by the same username.  
> http://smileytrashbag1.tumblr.com/


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